Lovie Dovie in the Sewers
by Dattebayo Devon
Summary: What happens when Masaomi drags his two buddies to a construction site? What happens when said buddies are trapped in the sewer? Enter if you dare.  It's just fluff.


**AN: **This is our attempt at a fluffy Mikado X Anri. 'Tis short … and, if you can guess from the title, we tried to avoid stereotypical girly manga settings … yep. Is FLUFFY. Is NOT really that sexual. Maybe, at some point in the future, we'll do something sexual with this pair (wow, that came out wrong) – we'll WRITE something sexual about this pair – but not right away (we should finish up what we've got before moving on). If you want more Mikado and Anri, vote for it on the poll on our page and any other pairings you see and like. I really, really, really hope this fanfiction turned out well, so please review and let me know how we did. We'd really like to know if we nailed this pairing right because we're considering doing another Mikado X Anri, but we want to make sure we're doing the pairing right. They're such a sweet moe couple, what's not to love about them? I'm shocked to see that there's only two other fanfictions about them on here … of course, I should expect that, considering that there's waaay too much Shizaya (seriously, don't you people get tired of it at some point?). I digressed. As for the alligators in the sewers reference ... in America, it's a well known fact that lizards and rats HAVE invaded the sewer systems. Including alligators. Don't believe me? Look it up. It's based on truth. Anyway, please! Please! Read and review!

**Korean Friendly Translation: **Thanks to lovitan for translating! Remember to remove the spaces, folks.  
**Part One:** h t t p : / / c a f e . n a v e r . c o m / m i k a d o l o v e / 2 7 9 9  
**Part Two: **h t t p : / / c a f e . n a v e r . c o m / m i k a d o l o v e / 2 8 1 7**  
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**Disclaimer: **We do not in any way own the characters / scenes / … oh you know the drill I'm sure.

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**Lovie-Dovie in the Sewers**

**A Durarara! Fanfiction written by Kitty & Foxy**

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" … Masaomi … I don't think you know where we're going."

Masaomi turned his head back to shoot a strained smile at his friend. "Of course I do! How could you ever doubt your best friend, Mikado?"

"Well … the fact that I'm pretty sure there's no construction site near where Sonohara-san or I live is a good start."

"Hmmm, is that so? Are you suuuure? It could be that they just started construction here!"

"I'm sure it's not recent and I'm sure it's not near our places," Mikado scowled as he looked around at their settings. Triangular piles of pipes and tubes were scattered around the area, as well as stacks of beams, bricks, and who knew what the equipment was called … including those trucks that have giant teeth and claw dirt from the ground … the name of these trucks slipped his mind, but that really wasn't the point now, was it? The "building" that was going up was nothing but a steel skeleton, with plenty of holes in the ground and wooden planks stretched out everywhere where, presumably, workers walked across to access various parts of the skeleton. _Some shortcut from the school THIS turned out to be._

"Well, I thought you guys might enjoy a little change in scenery. Aren't I great?" He lifted his arms up high and spread apart, as if to show his "greatness."

"Not if you think an old construction site is a 'picture of beauty.'"

"Hahah, don't be silly Mi-ka-do! This construction site isn't old. They've still got all their cranes and stuff here, and there aren't any security cameras set up yet! It's probably just their day off!"

Mikado couldn't help but think: _Does he think this place IS a thing of beauty since he clearly avoided my question …? Nah, he must think it's kind of cool. He had all those Tonka trucks back in elementary school … not to mention that "hole to America" he started digging in his backyard … _but he was straying again. _Really, I think it's just boring. And Sonohara-san's probably not into it either …_ he looked over at the silent girl, who's expression he still hadn't learnt to read. _I don't think she is, but she's probably afraid to complain … let's face it. Masaomi's lost and trying to change the topic._

"Just admit that you're lost, Masaomi-kun. Let's go back before we end up in a different district all together –"

"Aww, but we just got here! Let's take our time."

_Oh, now he's just being stubborn. _"Come on, I've got a lot of work to do and so does Sonoh – hey, Masaomi, get back here!"

"Come on slow pokes!" Masaomi's voice grew distant as he had vanished to the depths inside the skeletal frame. Mikado sweat-dropped as he watched Masaomi run around like a kid in a candy shop, while Anri merely looked down at the ground, keeping her face hidden. Mikado frowned, unsure if he should just backtrack and abandon his friend, or follow him in. Really … Masaomi had once claimed Mikado didn't change since elementary school, but Mikado definitely could say the same thing about the blond in many aspects (aside from looks). He decided to slowly – very, very, slowly – follow his friend inside.

Anri walked in silence beside Mikado, choosing to say nothing about the situation. In truth, this wasn't her ideal stop, but she didn't really mind being here. It was calm, and she was with friends, even if she didn't quite understand the friendship … or the 'beauty' that Kida-kun was seeing in this place. But as long as there was no danger, she was alright with it.

She didn't appear annoyed, but Mikado felt embarrassed for some reason. True, he wasn't the one who got them lost. Masaomi-kun had gotten them lost and had wittingly denied it. But he had encouraged Anri to follow along with Masaomi when his friend spoke to them of an "awesome, amazing, super beautiful" shortcut. Well, it seemed okay at the time … Masaomi-kun had been living here much longer than he, so he safely assumed that Masaomi knew his way around. And yet, here they were. Lost. Lost with a guide in denial. Masaomi's sense of direction ended the same way most of his jokes did: lamely guided with a finale of crash and burn.

_Maybe I'm thinking too much. It really IS Masaomi-kun's fault … but what if she somehow doesn't trust me in the future? I-I mean, I did show faith in Masaomi, and he clearly got us lost … and she's already shy, s-so she probably has trouble trusting people … wait, is Anri even the type of girl to take things this seriously? _He clutched the strap of his bag tighter, lost in the turmoil of his thoughts. _She doesn't look it, but she might … oh now I'm just confusing myself. I need to keep calm … keep cool. Show her I can handle something like this … That'll work … I think._ Yep. Like most genuinely concerned men, Mikado's thoughts were on the girl and not how to find their way back.

"Woah, hey guys! Guys! Come look at this!"

Both Anri and Mikado paused for a moment, looking around to first locate Masaomi, wondering what their friend was talking about. Masaomi was waving his arms around in one of the most ridiculous fashions ever seen. The two looked at each other, shrugged, and decided to go see what the big deal was. They headed over to him (carefully over wooden planks, to which Mikado nervously crossed on tip-toe and jumped every time it bent under his weight), nearing the frantic bundle of joy. However, they remained far away enough from the hole (and Masaomi) as a precaution.

"See, see? This thing must go at least five yards down and then to a tunnel that goes into the sewers! Look at how huge it is!" Mikado and Anri had the same blank thoughts and the same slightly-amused-by-Masaomi-not-the-object-in-front-of-him expressions. Masaomi, however, continued. "They haven't sealed it up or joined the connecting pipes yet! It's the big kind which they later put concrete slabs over! It's like a cave that leads to the sewers! Pretty awesome, right?"

Mikado took the opportunity to sigh, feeling a mark of irritation. "… Masaomi … did you bring us over here to show us an open manhole?"

"Yuup!"

Mikado groaned. _WHY_ did Masaomi seem even _more_ weird than usual? He assumed that this was all just a cover-up for the fact that he _REFUSED _to admit they were lost. He did this when they were kids, too, when they'd get lost in the neighborhood. He'd just forge his own trail, and they'd end up wandering for _hours_ in a weird direction until some stranger asked them if they were alright. … Yes, it was a fact that men _hated_ admitting they were lost … and they never asked for directions when they were. But, Masaomi _really _needed to drop the act. If Mikado were lost, he'd suck up his pride and ask for direc … He quickly withdrew that thought. Okay, maybe he wouldn't. At least, he'd try to find his way for maybe, an hour, but definitely not an entire _day_, which is what Masaomi would do to them if not stopped.

But maybe Masaomi didn't really see his "lost-ness" as a failure; his friend often failed to notice his jokes and flirting as failures. Instead, Masaomi often chose to see them as steps to a greater plane … or whatever it was that he said it was. Perhaps this was the same thing; finding something good out of something bad.

So, there they were. Staring at a hole. From a distance, of course. Mikado wasn't interested in getting too close. It appeared deep, and while it wasn't a cliff, he felt a little nervous standing next to it. Anri simply decided to stop next to Mikado, having no real opinion about the situation. Masaomi, on the other hand, was standing on his _tippy toes_ looking down with his hand pressed to his forehead like a scout surveying an area. He seemed to be enjoying himself, but frowned when he looked up to see his friends maintaining their distance.

"Oh come on, don't tell me you're scared of a hole," he taunted Mikado, casting a goofy grin.

"I'm not afraid of the hole, Masaomi-kun … I'm afraid of falling _into_ the hole."

Masaomi took the chance to sigh. "You're so paranoid about everything, Mikado. Didn't you tell me you wanted to change yourself when you got to Ikebukuro? Come on, time to shed that little meek kid image – the one that always made you cry when you scraped your knee – and be a MAN! You want to impress our lovely lady friend here, don't you? Eh?" Masaomi had, at this point, advanced towards Mikado and started teasing him.

Mikado stiffened and blushed. He glanced over at Anri, to see if there was any reaction (or if Masaomi's commentary was bothering her), but her expression remained the same. Only now, there seemed to be a light tinge of pink on her cheeks …

Anri, on the other hand, felt ashamed that she wasn't used to these things by now. Masaomi always made these types of remarks, so she should be able to just shrug them off … but something wouldn't let her. She felt ashamed that she was … well … acting like a normal girl. She knew, after all, she was very far from normal. So what right did someone like her have to feel appreciated by such comments? She came back to attention, however, when she noticed Mikado move from her side to the manhole. Not wanting to be left behind, she slowly followed until she was on the other side of Masaomi, close with her friends but still not over the manhole. Seemed like a smart choice.

Mikado decided to give into Masaomi, and stand right next to the manhole. It wasn't like Masaomi could provoke him into doing much further … he hoped. Though, it didn't really feel like an accomplishment, or "shedding his inner child" as Masaomi had put it. He still felt vertigo to a degree, and it was making him stiff.

"… I still don't see what's great." Mikado managed to say.

"You're just a constant downer, huh? Maybe Anri-chan _does_ need a better man, one more adventurous! Maaayyybeee like me?" He held an arm up in the air and turned towards Anri, his other arm blocking Mikado (who moved closer to try to yell in his friend's ear).

"Darn it, Masaomi-kun, it's just a hole! … A very … DEEP hole …" He leaned forward a little, squinting to see if he could see the bottom. He was just a tad bit curious, but the situation was still ridiculous, none-the-less. It was a manmade hole that led to a sewer system, not a _cave_.

"Fine, we'll leave Mr. 'No Fun.' Happ-" Masaomi never finished the sentence after the sequence of future events took place. As he turned, his still outstretched arm hit Mikado's back, and pushed the already leaning boy completely over.

Everything seemed to move in slow motion. Mikado knew that one moment, he was staring into a round blackness … and the next, he was in pitch darkness that seemed to be coming _toward_ him. He knew even before his feet left the ground that he was falling … perhaps that's why his brain screamed "Grab something!", and so he reached his arm in back of him and grasped for a handheld of any kind. _Maybe I am getting smarter. What is it? Street smarts? I mean, if I can think to grab while falling …_ That's what he was thinking before he connected his hand with what came first. It was something large, but … soft? And there was some kind of fabric too. But it didn't matter, because Mikado was still falling, dragging whatever was in his hand down with him.

The slow motion in the beginning now registered ten times faster, as if someone had hit the fast forward button on a remote control. He only recognized a few seconds of that time before the displeasure of colliding flat, face down, on the ground below (if it could even be called ground). He couldn't make any sound, as the impact had forced all the air out of his lungs before he could get his voice to work. Before he could even _think_ of what happened or recognize where the pain was located, a crushing weight suddenly hit him from behind, causing him to flatten more like a pancake on the not-so-flat (or clean) ground. Whatever – _whoever,_ he realized – landed on him had hit him hard on his ankle, and after the initial shock of being slammed and crushed all within the same minute, he felt a burning sensation inside his foot.

Then came the realization of the pain.

His entire front side felt disturbed. Thankfully, the hole hadn't been deep enough for him to crack every bone in his body, but he didn't want to move. At all. The slightest twitch or breath made his skin and bones ache in a burning fashion. What was worse was the pain he was feeling in his left ankle and his head … he looked up a little enough from the arm that had "saved" him (while one hand had dragged down a companion, the other hand moved to protect his face in time). It hadn't done very well in protecting him, as in the dimmed light from above he noticed the blood spattered on his sleeve. His brain was then able to register the blood was gushing from his nose.

He tried to make a sound, but all that came out was a faint whimpered groan. It was as if the pain were too much that his mind couldn't even register what_ kind_ of sound to make. It didn't help that all the air had been squished out of him, either. _I'm going to look terrible …_ came the sunken hearted feeling.

Well, now that he assessed the damage, it was time to deal with whatever was currently attempting to break his back –

"M-Mi-Mikado! Are you o-okay?" Came the worried, soft voice of the trio's female companion. But what made him hesitate in response was the fact that the voice came from directly "behind" him. Meaning …

_Of all the people …! Why couldn't I have pulled that jerk Masaomi in instead? He deserved it!_ Mikado screamed in his mind.

Much to his dismay, the object he groped turned out to be none other than poor Anri, whom he had dragged down into the hole with him. _Groped … heheh, that's kind of a funny word for me to use … I mean, it's not like I … well … with my hand … w-what _was_ that thing I held onto? So big … and soft … clothed but too round for an arm … I think … and too soft for a shoulder … aww crap …_

"I-I'm sorry, Ryuugamine-kun! I'll get off!" He felt the weight slide off of him, and he felt his body inflate (but not without the aches and pains of his muscles and bones). Now came out the sounds he wanted to make, but it wasn't like he was screaming in pain … just making his injured status known.

Anri had scurried off of her friend as quickly as she could, only to fall backwards a little into a nearby puddle. "A-are you okay?" She asked, sitting back up and trying to get a look at his face, as he had barely risen it. …_Is he blushing?_ "Your face is red …"

"My nowse is bwoken …" came out the whimpered reply, clearly distorted because of his bleeding nose. He hadn't gotten up yet, as he was still adjusting to the pain and making sure his body was alright before moving …

Anri flushed a little herself as well as she realized the blood. _H-how could I think he was blushing? His face is red because of the blood and impact …_ And then came, _I hope he doesn't think I'm an idiot for thinking he was blushing …!_

"!"

Anri looked up at the distant cry from above, just barely seeing Masaomi's head staring down into the hole at them.

"Are you both okay? Anything broken? Is he dead or just playing road kill? I can't see too well!" Came the panicked barrage of worries.

Mikado, receiving his energy from his irritability at the new voice, started pushing himself up into a sitting position, letting the pain sting in his chest a while longer as he moved around. _So far, nothing feels broken …_

"Ummm, yeah, we –" Anri started, but was cut short by Mikado's yelp of pain.

"Oww oww oww oww oww!" He cried the best he could with his broken nose, one hand keeping the blood from pouring out of said nose and the other now clutching the ankle he brought in towards his chest. Apparently it was broken as well.

"What's wrong?" Masaomi panicked, trying the best he could to get a closer look at the situation without falling in himself.

"R-Ryugamine-kun broke his nose and ankle … I think …" Anri wasn't too sure about the last part, moving in a little to help Mikado from rolling backwards in his painful dilemma.

"Awre you okay, Sonohawa-san?" Mikado managed to say after pressing against his ankle in such a way that the pain numbed. He imwardly cursed at his inability to speak right because of a stupid broken nose … _I'm going to murder Masaomi later …_ he decided. _That, or get him tranquilizers._

She nodded, remaining unsure of what to do. What does one do in this situation? She hadn't predicted falling down into the hole and having an injured companion. Was she supposed to help him? Climb out? Look for help? She honestly didn't have a clue.

"Miiikadoo, do you think you're well enough to climb out on your own?" Came the worried reply.

Mikado shook his head the best he could, not wanting to look up the hole to see if he could, for if he were to lift his head, all the blood would run down his throat … Anri confirmed his "no" to the blond above them.

"Alright, I'll go find help to remedy your clutziness, Mikado!" And with that, the blond tore off before either could offer a protested response. Masaomi decided he would search around the yard in hopes of running into a worker (even though that's what he wanted to avoid in the first place), feeling certain that Mikado and Anri could look after one another in the hole for a while. But then again … _Crocodiles don't really live in the sewers … do they?_

_Damn it, Masaomi, at least help Sonohara-san out of here before you run off!_ Came the ticked off voice inside Mikado's head. He had to vent anger out on something. True, he wasn't exactly expressive in his anger, but it didn't mean that he didn't feel it at times.

Anri took the chance to stand up to survey the tunnel they had landed in, as well as to see how high the hole was compared to herself. The hole was definitely too tall for them to climb out, and there weren't any slits or bars for them to climb up on – the hole had probably been meant for the flow of sewage only, and not meant for an actual manhole. The tunnels were just slightly higher than herself. _This is a construction site … maybe one of them leads out to somewhere that's also still open._

Her attention was then caught when the rustling of a bag could be heard, and she looked down to see Mikado, currently leaning against her legs, trying to fuss through the bag with one hand while keeping his nose held in the other.

"W-what are you looking for?" Anri asked, curious as to what the other was doing, but not wanting to pry.

"Sometin to clean myswelf up with," he answered, but sadly, all that was in his bag were textbooks and papers … hardly cleaning material.

He heard movement above him, and curious, glanced his eyes upward at Anri, but quickly averted them when he realized he could a) see partially up her skirt (though not all the way up to where the "golden land," as Masaomi put it, was), and b) could see the fine outline of her breasts as she was taking off her jacket. He already had a nosebleed, he didn't need a second one on top of that. "S-Sonohawa-san, what awe you doingk?" Came the stuttered question as he tried to erase the perverted thoughts from his mind. To him, even the slightest trespass on the land of perversion was just … wrong. So even though he could be thinking a lot worse, he still felt terribly guilty.

"Oh, uhh – well, you need something to clean up with, and it's wet and cold s-so I was going to take it off anyway, so I thought maybe you could use …" Indeed, the thing looked drenched, dirty, and smelled a little too, but it was clean enough to help clear away some of his blood. "T-this is probably stupid to be suggesting …" Yes, it was stupid. It was still dirty, and one wasn't supposed to be cleaning wounds with dirty things, right?

"N-no, tha's okay, Sonohawa-san, I – I cwan use my own jaket to … to …" He felt even more humiliated now. What was he saying? Didn't she just tell him that she was only taking it off because it was uncomfortable anyway? It's not like she didn't have anything on underneath it … but the thought of her having nothing on was both intriguing and disgusting to him. _Masaomi's perversion is rubbing off on me, isn't it?_ He inwardly began to cry.

She handed the jacket down to him, letting it catch the stray drops of blood that were falling out. She noted that he wasn't bleeding as heavily as he initially had been, but that was because he was plugging his nose with his hand.

Mikado hesitated to take it. Yes, it was considerably cleaner than his own jacket, as he had fallen flat onto the grime … but it was _Sonohara's _jacket. He felt guilty that he had to ruin it. But, as he saw the drops of blood fall onto it anyway, he realized the jacket already was dirty and would have to be cleaned later … _I'll offer to clean it too, as thanks._ He decided, and shyly took the jacket in his hand and let go of the blood, catching it on a corner of the coat. "Twank you," he muttered shyly, still not wanting to look up. The forbidden feminine curves were right above him, he couldn't bring himself to do it.

"It's not the best idea … it's dirty, s-so …" She started, but trailed off. She still couldn't figure out how to act around him, or what to do in this situation. It was a curious thing, how she knew how to behave around other males … but around her two male companions, she didn't have a clue. She could guess what it meant, but those guesses seemed too unlikely to be the answers for her to believe them.

"N-no, weally, thawnk you," Mikado tried to protest a little without moving too much. God, he was sounding so stupid right now. He liked Anri – that much was painfully obvious, he knew that – but she was difficult to read and react around sometimes. He couldn't tell if he was embarrassing her, making her angry, upset … she seemed fine with everything, but there was always the second guesses. Maybe she really was upset about Masaomi's constant erotic jokes and was broiling with rage, or maybe as he was bleeding onto her jacket, she could be inwardly cursing about how she'd have to clean it later … it was troubling not knowing what she was really thinking.

"W-we should set your ankle, too," Anri stated, moving around once Mikado got his own support, and crouching down on her knees to look at the ankle. Although she didn't know exactly where she obtained this knowledge, she knew how to set ankles and wrists when broken. At least, she knew how to do so crudely. Mikado started to protest, however, when she proceeded to remove his shoe and sock to get a better look at it. Anri jumped a little, surprised. "W-what? Does it hurt?" _It's probably really broken if he's reacting like this …_

Mikado, however, had other thoughts on his mind. _W-what's she doing? I can take off my own shoe, s-she doesn't have to -!_ But after she asked him if it hurt, he realized she was probably trying to get a better look at the injury. _… Masaomi's definitely rubbing off on me … in all the wrong ways._ He felt horrified that his thoughts had been reduced to the perversion of his friend.

"A-ah, it's fwine," Mikado squeaked, hearing his voice crack and immediately cursing himself for his cracked voice. Anri had noticed it, but seemed to pass it off. Once again, she was difficult to read.

"Do you have anything in y-your bag that we can set this with?" She asked, looking at his bag which was on his other side. He nodded, using his free hand to pull the bag up onto his lap. "Thwere's a wuler in there …" He pulled it out. It was a wooden ruler, and not one of the cheap flimsy plastic ones, so it would work well. He passed it to her. "A-and ywou can use this," he added, starting to undo his tie with his fingers with his free hand, trying not to move the jacket in his other hand. His nose was still bleeding … that probably wasn't good.

Once she had the ruler and the tie, she pulled his leg out a bit, and with a quick motion, cracked it back into place. He jumped a little with a surprised noise, but he kept his balance. She used the materials at hand to set it. It was crude, but it would last until they were able to find a doctor.

They stayed there for a few minutes in an awkward silence. Anri had stood back up again, surveying the area once more. They definitely couldn't climb out, unless Kida-kun brought back a ladder of sorts. _This is a sewage tunnel, so at some point there has to be an actual manhole with a ladder of sorts._ She decided.

"…Is Kida-kun going to come back?" Anri asked, suddenly realizing the blond had not yet returned. _Shouldn't he have found help by now?_

Mikado shrugged; he really didn't know. Right now, he was more concerned about his ankle, his nose, how he was going to get out, and how he could remain innocent in his thoughts. He'd throttle the blond later, but that was set aside for later.

"I – I think I'm going to explore the tunnel a little." Anri stated, feeling a little bolder. Mikado, however, became terrified.

"W-what?" He stuttered, bringing his head up as much as he could without letting the blood flow into his throat. "Y-you cawn't do that!" He started protesting. "I – I mean, you could get lost, or – or – " As much as he wanted out of here, he'd feel beyond dreadful if Anri somehow got _lost_ in the sewers. And if she got hurt falling down another hole somewhere or something …

"I'll be fine," She insisted, her voice sounding sweet to him. "I won't go too far," she added, making sure he understood she'd be alright. He calmed down, deciding that he needed to trust she'd be alright.

Anri started down one of the tunnels after making sure Mikado would be alright on his own. It soon grew dark, and she couldn't see Mikado anymore. Sighing a little in relief, she let the demon that constantly spoke in her mind to tingle, and allowed the night vision that Saika possessed to kick in. She hadn't activated it earlier because she didn't want Mikado to know about Saika yet … she wasn't sure that he'd accept the demonic qualities, and she felt _afraid_ of that. She trusted him, yes, but she couldn't trust him with one of the most important facts about her. She didn't experience fear like others did, but the feeling she felt when she thought of such things could be called fear.

And so began her search for an exit out.  
*

Mikado, on the other hand, was attempting to pass his time without worrying. How could he not worry? Anri was wandering the tunnels … she could get lost or worse, hurt, or even worse, both … Masaomi was _still_ nowhere to be seen or heard … and he couldn't really do squat while sitting with a broken ankle and a broken nose. His anxiousness kept him alert, and the ten to fifteen minutes or so that he was alone passed by agonizingly. _I just have to wait for one or the other to show up … _he kept telling himself. _They will come back … they will_.

He eventually fixed his gaze on the tunnels, but his terror was only making his imagination run. He stared at the empty tunnel for a while, and suddenly, he was reminded of all the creepy crawlies that could be living in there. Spiders, rats, cats …_ alligators …_

He shook his head. _That's just your imagination running wild, Mikado …_ he told himself, and turned his head to look back down the tunnel which Anri had vanished down, and nearly jumped out of his skin when he saw two glowing red … _things_ in the depths of the tunnel.

Suddenly, all those horror movies about creatures living in the sewers came to life to him. _What is it? Why are its eyes glowing like that?_ _I can't run, what if it tries to eat me?_ Normally, he'd have more rational thoughts, but all his terror and humiliation built up so high that rationality didn't really make rational sense to him at the moment. The red glow flickered out, and now he could hear footsteps of sorts. _Whatever it is, it's coming …_ his heart must have stopped at this point, and the expression on his face would be beyond hilarious if chanced upon by an unknowing stranger.

But, as the figure emerged from the true shadows, it spoke: "Are you alright, R-Ryugamine-kun?"

Mikado tried to calm his beating heart, but his attempts were miserably failing. _There WERE glowing red eyes! I saw them! B-but …_ Anri just emerged from the same direction, unharmed. And it seems that she didn't see anything. _It was there … right?_ Did the fall somehow knock something around in his brain so that he was hallucinating now? He dearly hoped not …

However, the blood that rushed around his veins continued to rush, but now for entirely different reason. He soon forgot seeing glowing red eyes. He watched Anri transpire from the shadows, but his eyes focused somewhere else. She was wet and grimier than when she had left, and her white blouse (remember, her jacket was currently playing nurse to his nose) was wet as well. And, as the cliché goes, it was clinging to her curves and almost appearing see through. In fact, he could even spy the color of the … the …

"You're wet …?" Mikado asked, a little surprised and concerned in his words, but then mentally kicked himself to kingdom come for asking such a question. _Idiot, don't let her know that you're being a pervert!_ He tried to avert his eyes, but he couldn't help it. It wasn't often he chanced to see female … anatomy in such a manner. Especially on the girl he liked. _Oh god, Masaomi would consider this 'scoring,' wouldn't he?_ He might be accusing Masaomi, but he was starting to realize that maybe he was using his friend's blatant perversion as an excuse for his own to flourish.

"I t-tripped, but I'm alright," she chuckled nervously, waving her hands in front of her to show she was fine. "I'm sorry if I scared you," she apologized. She had seen Mikado's terrified face while heading back. She hadn't meant to frighten him, but she assumed he'd realize it was her.

"Y-you didn't," he lied, but he knew she knew he was frightened. _I am a wuss …_ he came to the pathetic conclusion with a broken heart. _At least, I'm a wuss in front of the one person I shouldn't be a wuss in front of …_

Anri flushed a little, walking up to the other blushing friend. "I found a way out … c-can you walk?"

Mikado frowned, trying not to look up at the-curves-which-were-now-extremely-well-defined, and decided he'd try to get up. He kept all his weight on his good leg, but nearly lost his balance trying to keep one foot up and his head bent down so his nose wouldn't bleed much more. He started falling backwards, but Anri caught him in time, helping him regain his balance. "I don't think I can walk …" he really didn't have any manliness, did he? This was pathetic … _At least you're able to talk better now,_ he noted; yes, the blood was coming out much less. That was a plus at the least, right? Right?

"I can carry you," Anri offered, moving to Mikado's side and keeping him up with her arm.

"A-are you sure?" Mikado squeaked again. Many objections were running wild through his mind. _A girl carry me? Can she carry me? I don't want to be a burden! What if I'm too heavy? Shouldn't it be the guy carrying the girl in situations like this?_

Anri nodded. She enjoyed physical education, and she was quite strong in her own way. She'd be able to carry him the distance needed to exit the sewer system. She helped him gather his things, sticking his shoe and sock into his bag and letting him put it on before their attempt to get him on her back.

Mikado felt beyond awkward. This was the _complete_ opposite of things he'd seen and heard and read about. The guy was supposed to carry the girl, _not the other way around_. But he also realized that trying that would prove impractical, and would only result in further injuries. _It's okay, it's okay … if she shows even the slightest sign of faltering, I'll get off and hop my way to freedom_. He proclaimed in his mind. He couldn't help but fluster at feeling womanly curves this closely (even though it wasn't for the reasons he was flustering for), trying to ignore the humility and the rush he was getting. She was soft. Quite unlike men. Well, he expected women to feel soft, but … _I sound like an idiot right now, _he inwardly moaned in despair. What was even worse was he was dreaming up an angry inner-Anri, this time probably complaining about how "she had to carry him" and the likes.

However, she seemed perfectly capable of carrying him. Mikado honestly didn't know how he felt about that, but he was grateful that she was willing to do this (he hoped she was willing, anyway). Even more awkwardly was that he had to hold on by wrapping his arms around .. well … her chest. Not right _across_, mind you, that would be impractical and perverted, but still … he was getting a good feel. _How Masaomi would torture me if he saw this …_ he frowned, inwardly crying once more. He had enough adventure for today. He wanted to go home, eat a nice meal, and curl up and forget everything.

Mikado rested the coat on her shoulder, and his chin on top of that so any stray specks of blood would land on the coat and not her blouse. And thankfully, the blouse was blocking his view of … well … the shirt's transparency, and they had proceeded into darkness, so he felt slightly more comfortable in one way. He might be able to _feel_ what was there now, but he couldn't _see _it. And he didn't want to see Anri in that way, either. At least, not at first … he wanted to appreciate her for who she was before becoming perverted. And until he could ascertain her emotions, he didn't want to see her in that light. It was probably his "country-side" raising and manners speaking this, but he didn't want to and that was that. Instead, he could smell the shampoo she used in her hair, and he let his thoughts calm down as he took in the soothing scent, trying to ignore the current situation they were in.

Anri too was concerned about how Mikado felt. She was trying her best to make sure not to hurt him anymore … after all, her fall on top of him was the most probable cause of his broken ankle. She hoped he didn't think ill of her. She still didn't know how she felt about Mikado … she was nervous around both him and Masaomi. But the reasons seemed different. Masaomi was an opposite of sorts, with an outgoing extroverted personality, and that was probably key to why she was uncomfortable at times. But Mikado was more similar to her in personality. So why did she feel nervous around him? She was comfortable around complete strangers, but not her own friends. And she couldn't exactly name the reason for Mikado, either. He was kind to her, and always willing to help, but so were many other strangers that she encountered on the streets. She had an easier time talking to Celty's boyfriend, or teachers, or other guys in the classrooms, but not Mikado. And it pained her that she couldn't figure out why …

Both were lost in their thoughts, and before they knew it, they reached the end of the tunnel. The construction site had dug down, so it was easy to walk out of the tunnel and into the dug down area.

"We're out …" Anri stated, climbing out of the large pipe and onto the construction ground around her. She didn't know how she felt about getting out, but she could say that it was similar to relief. Relief that they were out, relief that she could let him down now, and relief that her thoughts couldn't weigh as heavily on her … for now. That was it all over: relief.

"Y-you can let me down now," Mikado quickly slid off at the first opportunity he got. He didn't want to be a burden, and now he didn't have to be. He felt relieved, but at the same time, a little regret chimed in his head: he couldn't be close to Anri anymore …

"We should get you to a doctor," She said worriedly, walking over to stabilize him as he tried to balance on his good leg. _At least the hospital's about a block away from this site, so it's easy to get to …_ "W-where _did_ Masaomi go?" She wondered aloud, looking around but finding it devoid of the bubbly blond.

"Who cares?" Mikado growled, but then did a complete 180˚. "I – I mean –" _I didn't mean to sound like that!_ He meant to scream, but he stopped when he spied a smile on her face.

"That's alright … he'll find his own way home," she said, keeping a smile. Mikado shyly offered his own coat to her now that they were out, saying something about keeping her warm, and she took it. She then proceeded to help Mikado hobble out of the construction site, ignoring the weird looks they were getting from those passing by as they made their way to the hospital.

She wasn't sure what feeling she was experiencing in those few moments, but she liked it. It felt like, in a weird kind of way, that she was moving closer to something. And that something, to her, felt tenderly warm.


End file.
